Out of the game for a while. Need product help.

machboy

New member
Hey there guys and gals. This is a newb post so please forgive me. I've been out of the detailing game for a few years and need a little help on any new products that are out there.



Right now I have these current products:



PC7424, CCS pads

Gold Class Car Wash

Meg's 83, 80, 3 - 3+ years old

Menzerna FPII, IP - 3+ years old

Natty's Red Wax - newer

Klasse AIO - 4+ years old

Mothers Reflections Pair - 2+ years old

4 Star UPP - 4+ years old - No Good



As you can see I have a lot of compounds/polishes but they are all aging. Obviously I've let things site longer than i should have but my question is what is now too old? and what important products am I missing?



The 4 Star seems to be ruined (separated) is their a better replacement out now or is UPP still pretty good? EX-P is much cheaper...as good as UPP?



Thank you very much for your help guys.
 
here is a list of all the newer/solid products I use

megs 105/205

menzerna SIP, 203, 106, 85rd

blackfire wet diamond

wolfgang fuzion

hydro tech foam pads, uber pads



I am testing out the prima line up tomorrow on a mercedes to see how it stacks up against the megs/menzerna stuff...hopefully I'll be adding it to my arsenal!
 
from what i have read about . . . . after a while and i'm sure 4 years is a while products just are not the same in respects to things like polishes and compounds. As you are experiencing already with the 4 Star separating.



Shake them up and test them out, you might get lucky and have them still work perfectly fine.



What are the specs on your vehicle so we can narrow things down a bit to help you with your current vehicle.
 
vtec92civic said:
from what i have read about . . . . after a while and i'm sure 4 years is a while products just are not the same in respects to things like polishes and compounds. As you are experiencing already with the 4 Star separating.



Shake them up and test them out, you might get lucky and have them still work perfectly fine.



What are the specs on your vehicle so we can narrow things down a bit to help you with your current vehicle.



My car is a red 03 Mustang and my wife's is a red Honda Accord. But I also will be getting back into detailing family and friend's vehicles as well.



Yeah I've noticed a few of the older products are really hard to shake up to the point where it's no longer separated. Except for Klasse...it looks the same..so I have no idea whether or not it's still any good. I guess I need a new AIO...what's a good one now?
 
The basics I would suggest



Wash-Optimum No rinse

Clay-Clay Magic blue

Compound-Meguiars #105

Polish-Meguiars #205

Polisher-G110 V2, PC 7424 XP

Glaze-Clearkote RMG

Wax-Clearkote CMW

Tire/fenderwell dressing: Armor All



Personally, I think carnauba is hard to beat on red but since you have AIO, assuming it is still good, you can use Optimum Opti-Seal or Werkstat's Acrylic Jett Trigger.
 
Scottwax said:
The basics I would suggest



Wash-Optimum No rinse

Clay-Clay Magic blue

Compound-Meguiars #105

Polish-Meguiars #205

Polisher-G110 V2, PC 7424 XP

Glaze-Clearkote RMG

Wax-Clearkote CMW

Tire/fenderwell dressing: Armor All



Personally, I think carnauba is hard to beat on red but since you have AIO, assuming it is still good, you can use Optimum Opti-Seal or Werkstat's Acrylic Jett Trigger.



Thank you Scottwax. What about topping KAIO with Natty's Red? Or is KAIO not durable enough and that is why you suggest topping with sealant?
 
machboy said:
Thank you Scottwax. What about topping KAIO with Natty's Red? Or is KAIO not durable enough and that is why you suggest topping with sealant?



KAIO + carnauba is fine. Personally, I am not big on topping. If whatever you are using needs to be topped to look good to you, use something else. KAIO is more something I'd use for the finish it leaves rather than its protective properties.
 
machboy- You sure the UPP won't work OK once it's shaken up? Both of my bottles (v2.0 and v3.0) are older than that, and they're both still OK after a good shaking. The one never *quite* comes back 100% but it still works just fine even with a little apparent separation.



As for the other stuff, a whole lot of my products are *much* older than that (e.g., my Klasse twins are at least a decade old), and they still work fine.



But yeah, M105 and M205 are almost "must try" products, especially the M105.
 
Accumulator said:
machboy- You sure the UPP won't work OK once it's shaken up? Both of my bottles (v2.0 and v3.0) are older than that, and they're both still OK after a good shaking. The one never *quite* comes back 100% but it still works just fine even with a little apparent separation.



As for the other stuff, a whole lot of my products are *much* older than that (e.g., my Klasse twins are at least a decade old), and they still work fine.



But yeah, M105 and M205 are almost "must try" products, especially the M105.



The UPP just seems really thin. Even after I shake the bejesus out of it. I REALLY love how it looks and because it's so $$ i'd hate to have to replace it. I thought about buying another sealant but UPP is all i've ever used...dont know what else to get.



Scottwax - where can I purchase Clearkote products online? Autogeek doesnt have them it seems.
 
machboy said:
The UPP just seems really thin. Even after I shake the bejesus out of it. I REALLY love how it looks and because it's so $$ i'd hate to have to replace it. I thought about buying another sealant but UPP is all i've ever used...dont know what else to get..



I'd give it a try and see how things turn out. You could always just do one panel if you're pretty sure it's gone bad.



The only "new" sealant I'm a big fan of is FK1000P, a paste product that's very good.
 
Thanks guys for the awesome suggestions. For friends and other family members I'm looking to do a more Production Work quality rather than Show Car like I do with my personal vehicles. Production Work - as little steps as possible with good results.



I was thinking (using what I have) of doing:



GC wash

Mother's clay

(paint correction if needed)

KAIO ?

LSP (nattys or UPP)When doing other's cars I would prefer to use a sealant as the LSP for it's lasting properties as I wont be able to detail the car every weekend like I do with my own.



Does this sound right? If paint correction is needed then is KAIO even necessary since the paint will be cleaned during polishing?
 
What would you recommend as good replacement for Four Star UPP?



I don't quite care for how KAIO looks all by itself. I prefer to put something else over it, such as UPP but I'm almost out of it and don't feel like spending $40 (tax+shipping) for another bottle.
 
machboy said:
What would you recommend as good replacement for Four Star UPP?



I don't quite care for how KAIO looks all by itself. I prefer to put something else over it, such as UPP but I'm almost out of it and don't feel like spending $40 (tax+shipping) for another bottle.



For the family-and-friends details, I used AutoGlym SRP instead of KAIO, and topped with Collinite 476S. One coat of the 476S always proved much more durable for me than one coat of any sealant I've tried.



I dunno *what* to say about replacing the UPP :think: Even though it doesn't last long, and is *lousy* protection against bug-gut etching, it's one *VERY* slick product (until the first wash) and gives a nice, and unique look. Even though I'd like to find something that's much more durable/protective, I'm still using UPP on my S8 just because there's nothing else quite like it IME. But I consider it a garage-queen LSP.



Oh, and I never use KAIO by itself as it doesn't last long at all. The SRP is quite a bit better in that regard, but I'd still top it with *something*. I use KAIO as a paint cleaner and as a base for KSG, otherwise I reach for something else.
 
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